Saturday, August 05, 2006

Faster Than a Speeding Czech Cop

A journalist has to be to keep up with the country's Police President on his way to the office:

Police want to bring charges against three journalists who tracked Police President Vladislav Husák driving at excessive speeds on his way to work recently.

"We have received numerous complaints from citizens calling for the journalists to be punished as well," Police Presidium spokesman David Kubalák said. "We cannot rule out that there was a violation of the traffic rules committed by the journalists."

Mladá fronta Dnes (MfD) reporters Zuzana Janečková and Jan Gazdík, along with photographer David Port, followed Husák to work July 18 and 19, and the following day published a report that said the police president hit speeds upward of 190 kmh (118 mph) during his commute.

The story followed the recent implementation of strict new driving regulations nationwide that signaled a renewed government crackdown on reckless driving. Since then, fatalities on roads have dropped significantly, but the regulations remain unpopular.

In response to the MfD report, Husák admitted to speeding, agreed to have his license suspended for three months and gave 10,000 Kč ($440) to charity.